Highschool DxD: Bloodless
by Tekurai
Summary: "We live to die." Those were the words he always lived by, even after his rebirth as a devil. [Re-writing in progress]
1. Prologue

**Bloodless **

**Prologue **

** Disclaimer: I do not own anything except for this story and the OCs in it. **

_A cherry blossom fell from its tree. Followed by another, and then another. Its journey, however, did not end even after descending onto the petal coated earth; instead it started anew with a burst of wind made by a petite child's dash._

_That running child held my right hand firmly as she eagerly led me towards an unknown destination. Words escaped my mouth as I dashed behind her, my hand holding onto hers so dearly, refusing to let go. With my heart beating heavily against my chest, I let her guide me._

_Cherry blossoms continued falling from their home, piece by piece infinitely. Its journey did not end even after touching the pinked ground. Revived by the breeze, our dash, its flight restarts. _

_The words let out were unheard by me, but she heard them, and she halted. I halted. Neither of us let go of our entwined hands. She held my right, I held her left. She turned and looked up to me._

_Long black hair fluttered._

_Innocent red-brown eyes stared._

_Small, soft lips smiled._

_I could not help but smile back._

_This time she opened her mouth and syllables were whispered, carried away by a nonexistent breeze. The words failed to reach my ears, or maybe it was my ears that failed to grasp her words, but either way I understood. I understood those unheard words because I replied._

_Again, the words were soundless, my deaf ears refused to listen—but I could feel the emotions behind my own words: a hint of sadness mixed with bits of bitterness. _

_My chest then tightened, like someone was squeezing away every bit of air from my exposed heart until my heart itself is crushed beyond repair, yet I smiled. It was a happy yet sad smile, but it brought forth a dazzling, innocent smile from her; a burst of white light in this world of dark and blossoms._

_Again, words escaped my mouth, except this time I heard them, somewhat._

_"...world...cruel... Don't...ever...cruelty...you, Ino—"_

_The moment those cursed words were said, the moment it happened._

_The echo of shattering glass razed the cherished peace._

_Earth beneath us howled in anger, in agony._

_This world, our world, began breaking. _

_Cracks crawled along the ground with crimson liquid oozing through, eagerly devouring away the crusted surface to reign. Trees withered, branches snapped and fell—into the raising sea of crimson with a sickening splash. Blossoms once pure now tainted met their demise as they joined the sea in waves._

_Anger and Fear clung to my sanity, but their grip was lost the moment I turned my attention to her._

_The sight of doom greeted me and my grasp of her hand went numb._

_Every inch of her—covered in blood._

_Her rust colored eyes lifeless._

_Her fragile body lifeless._

_Her hand that I held too, lifeless._

_A choking scream made way to my throat but made no desire to be freed. Tears gathered in my eyes, but they too refused to fall._

_Another scream erupted from within as I held her limped body closely, like the first, it held itself in my throat, refusing to be heard._

_I felt myself soundlessly shout. _

_Shouting in anger and lost._

_Cursing myself and the world itself._

_A part of me plead for help as I held her even closer, fighting against the currents of the raging blood sea that dared to separate us. The battle was for naught because she was merging into the sea itself._

_The girl, my lifeline, my light, my everything was liquefying into blood._

_I could only watch for my body was now beyond numb; watch she slip through my trembling fingers and become one with the endless crimson._

_A puddle of her remained on my palm, glistening darkly._

_I stared at the blood; the last trace of her. _

_It felt warm, no, it felt cold? _

_Again, I open my mouth to howl my anger, again it clogged itself down._

_Grief, that was the last emotion left in me; the lonely being standing in a bloodied world. _

_The tears gathered around my eyes obscured my view, but I still feel her blood resting in my palms. _

_The world around me continued on its destruction, the sea itself called to me. _

_Closing my bloodied hand, my eyes, my mouth, I let myself back fall into the crimson abyss. _

_Blood reached forth and enveloped me whole, yet I did not struggle, I merely accepted it. _

_With a heavy heart, I slowly sank into endless crimson, my body numb, my vision blurred._

_Darkness reigned for what felt like eternity until a slip of light greeted my blinded eyes._

_The mourning has at last come._

* * *

**A/N: **The intro to my first fan fiction is finally finished! I admit, it is a bit dark but its rated M for a reason. The first official chapter will be released tomorrow or the day after along with the character bio. Please read/enjoy/review!


	2. Chapter 1

**Bloodless**

**Chapter One**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything except for this story and the OCs in it. **

Boredom.

That was the thought that ran through my mind as I slowly stride down the third year hallway of Kuoh Academy. I had to admit, the school was quite massive and well-designed, but compared to a certain all girls academy I've frequented, Kuoh could not compare. Then again, this was an ordinary private school that doesn't contain any prodigy child teacher or a wanted chibi vampire.

Fighting back an army of yawns, I ran my hand through my black hair, making sure a good portion of it covered my ears—and my seven piercings. I would normally let them be visible, but humans are quick to judge others' appearances, making them a pain to deal with. Not only that, but anyone with a magic background here can easily tell that they are seals...my identity could then be exposed. Truly a pain.

On my right, a long haired brunette with a ponytail neatly running down her left and light brown eyes gave me an amused side-glance like she was reading my negative thoughts before snickering. She was a beauty with a flawless face, an average height and a tempting body that any male would die for. She was also clad in Kuoh Academy's uniform that consisted of a white long-sleeved, button down pinstriped shirt, a black ribbon on the collar, a black shoulder cape with a matching button-down corset and a magenta skirt with white accents. Beautiful was the only word needed to describe her.

"The uniform looks good on you, Uzume," I said while smirking.

My compliment earned me a light blush and a delightful smile from said person.

"You look good as well, Rainy," was her reply.

Looking down at my clothes I sulked somewhat. I was clad in the male version of her uniform: the same pinstriped shirt covered by a black blazer with white accents, black pants and brown dress shoes. It felt confining. Something more casual certainly would've been better.

Our destination was soon reached and we stopped before the closed door of Class 3-A. The sound of gentle chatter from students, the scraping of chairs and desk along with the teacher's order for silence could easily be heard through the walls. A single thought came into my mind when I heard these noises of normality.

'_Would she be happy to attend school if she was still here? Making friends with individuals her age and_—'

My thought was broken when I felt a finger playfully poking my cheek. Taking a small glance at my companion, I knew immediately that she has once again read my thoughts by the concerned expression she made.

'_I've made her worry.'_

Taking her poking hand with my own, I give it a light squeeze before letting ago and once again face the closed door. Now was not the time to get lost in the past; I am about to walk into my personal hell after all.

"You two may come in now," the teacher's voice called out.

With those I reached for the sliding door and walked in while shedding a tear inside. Life is cruel.

* * *

Stepping into the classroom, I casually made my way towards the teacher's podium with Uzume trailing right behind. Countless eyes were directed towards us, watching our every moment and whispering slowly made its way around the room. Ignoring it all, I turned and face the class. The whispering then exploded.

"Transfer students? During this time?"

"Handsome!"

"Check out her body!"

"Look at those enchanting red eyes!"

"She's gotta be a D-cup!"

Ignoring the chattering once again, I eyed the entire class while Uzume tried hiding her laughter from the student's reactions and comments.

Two conclusions were made from my observation—the first is the ratio of girls and boys, it was 8:2. There's no doubt that the females have the higher authority here. The second is the two concealed demonic auras. Demons are attending school here—no surprise there, however the two auras felt similar to Mana and Zazie's, weaker, but still similar. This could only mean that the two demons here are undeniably high ranking.

The first demonic aura, also the closet belongs to a beautiful bespectacled young woman with black hair styled in a bob cut and slender figure. She carried with her an atmosphere of nobility and strictness—just the type I would enjoy teasing. But what really caught my attention were her eyes; those violet eyes were the eyes of a skillful tactician, hawking us for possible openings. Truly mesmerizing.

'_She's analyzing us…with a poker face that rivals Sieg's.'_

The moment I thought of that, the blue-haired elemental master's scowling face flashed before my mind. Scary, now moving on.

The second aura belongs to another young woman with long crimson hair, blue-green eyes, and a rather developed body. She, too, had an air of nobility. Her crimson hair reminded me of Hwa Ryun, the Red Witch and like the first demon; she eyed us, but with hinted of interest before lightly smirking.

"Please quiet down!" the female teacher sternly instructs.

Her words takes effect after a short moment. She then turned to us and gives us a small nod.

'_Introductions huh.'_

Taking one slight step forward, I bowed to the students.

"Greetings, my name is Sang Karino. As you can see, I'll be joining this class from today onwards. It's a pleasure to meet you all," and with that I winked at my audience.

"Kyaas" from blushing girls and I think growling (?) from irritated guys was the response I got. A few girls even fainted and I couldn't help but chuckle. Really now, there were so many possible preys to choose from for my pranks here, the excitement made my blood race.

Uzume must've figured out my thoughts again because she gave me a look of amusement and a look of slight pity towards the class before stepping up next to me to start her introduction.

"And I'm Uzume Hikari. You can just call me Uzume. Nice to meet you!" she said in a playful tone before bowing.

Before anyone could make a sound, the teacher quickly voice out her new orders, "Karino-san, Hikari-san, there are two seats available next to Shitori-san. Please have a seat so we can get class started."

The both of us gave her a small nod and I begin rescanning the class for the vacant seats before a slender right hand raised up. What did you know? The hand belonged to the bespectacled demon from earlier.

Giving the demon a slight nod, Uzume and I picked up our bags made our way to the empty desks. I stationed myself in the middle with the Shitori on my left and Uzume on my right. It was the wisest move to make since Uzume lacked knowledge on demons and having one directly next to her could mean greater danger.

After sitting down I grabbed a notebook and pencil from the bag and begin lightly tapping it on the table. That caused my demon neighbor to vaguely arch an eyebrow before she turned her attention back to the chalkboard. Ignoring the prying gazes from the other students, I gave Uzume a glance and she nodded. It was time. The moment the teacher started the lesson the both of us opened out notebooks and started scribbling, letting our imaginations battle.

* * *

The sounding of the bell awoken us from our doodling world, it was already lunch time. Looking down at my notebook I couldn't help but feel proud; it was my victory. The pages were crammed with drawings of random objects such as trees, birds, pandas and even angry Siegs. Uzume's notebook looked the same, except some of her pictures lacked detail which was the reason for my victory and her current pouting.

Before either of us could react, a mob of students surrounded us like a pack of hungry wolves eyeing fresh meat. Questions were thrown at us from all directions from where we're from to our favorite things to even our relationship. I paid them little interest and Uzume just chuckled, moving closer to me to avoid some wandering hands.

In the corner of my eyes, I spotted another bespectacled woman at the door. She was tall woman with long straight black hair, split bangs and pointed brown eyes. She too, had a demonic aura, but it was weak compared to the previous two. From the looks of it, she was waiting for someone.

'_There are more demons here than I expected...'_

My guess was correct the moment the Shitori woman got up from her desk and elegantly strides towards the door. The taller girl turned around and follows closely, one step behind.

'_A master and servant relationship?'_

Turning back to the students crowding us, I offer them a light smile. Again, blushes and "kyaas" was the reaction.

"My apologies, but Uzume and I must head to the school office now. We still need to finish some paperwork to complete our transfer," I ended that with a fake apologetic face.

Seeing her cue, Uzume also said her apology and we made our way out the door with dazed students behind us.

* * *

"This place is mentally exhausting," I whined while letting out a gigantic yawn.

A light hum was the only reply I got from my partner as she stared at the students on the ground level.

The both of us are now on the school rooftop trying to relax a bit after eating our lunches. It was the only quiet place we managed to find without students, and sadly this peace will only last an hour before class starts again.

Feeling my exhaustion building up, I lay down and stared into the cloudless blue sky. It felt calming seeing the never-ending blue hovering above me, like paradise was within reach. I was lost in it.

Soon my eyes drowsily begin closing but snapped open when Uzume positioned her head directly above mine, blocking my view of the sky. Light brown met deep crimson. We simply stared at each other for what felt like eternity before she placed a hand on my chest. It was a gentle touch filled with warmth, with love, with need. A touch that sent a slight spark throughout my body, leaving me yearning for more. A touch that I am unworthy of.

As we continued staring into one another, Uzume slowly inched her face forward towards mine. With the closing distance, the heat of her breaths increased, tingling my skin; a sensation of ecstasy. We were now centimeters apart, our eyes never leaving each others, eyes filled with the yearning for that unattainable end. If I was to move my head ever so slightly, then a kiss would be exchanged. A kiss that would make her mine, forever... if only I had that forever.

Reaching out my right hand, I gently caress Uzume's head, guiding it not towards my lips, but towards my chest. She didn't resist, but I caught a glimpse of hurt and then realization. I was once again staring into the eternal blue, with Uzume snuggling against my chest, listening to my even heartbeats. I did not move my hand away, though, and gave her a small pat.

"Uzume," I lightly called out.

"...hm."

"I am not Chiho; therefore I cannot be your fated one."

She did not reply to that, instead she clutched onto my chest even tighter.

After a short minute, she finally replied, "I know, and I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

'_Because no matter what, I'll be here for you_—_that was my promise.'_

After a moment of silence, Uzume detach herself from me, taking with her the blissful warmth.

"Say, how is Ling-tan doing?" she asked, while changing to a sitting position. The desire to change the subject was evident from her tone and I went with it.

Closing my eyes, I focused my senses into the silver pendent hidden under my shirt. The presence of every weapon stored inside the pendant was felt, but I couldn't feel her consciousness within the cross halberds. I tried calling out to her.

"_Ling?"_

No reply.

Again I searched and called; the result was the same, she did not respond.

"She's still resting from the looks of it," I replied as I open my eyes.

"That's not surprising. That incident took a lot out of all of us," she sadly smiles about, staring into the sky.

"Indeed it did. She actually challenged Karasuba to a duel and even did a worthy amount of damage on her. It was mostly thanks to her that I passed Minaka's little trial and got out of the city," I mumbled, remembering the white haired bastard's annoying laugh. Oh how I want to hurl him into the sun when I meet him again.

"You're thinking about hurling him into space, aren't you?"

I grunted to answer that question and she sniggered, "You slashed apart the capital's tower before you left, and fended off over 1,000 MBI soldiers. The Sekirei Plan has been halted because of your act. You got him good."

"Give Minato and his crew credit too, they did help with the battle. Still...it was somewhat boring and I got lectured by Miya at the end," I said nonchalantly. Miya's lecture lasted five hours and on top of that, she even had her hannya mask out. Just thinking back on that event made me tremble in slight fear.

Feeling drowsiness consume me again I begin closing my eyes only to be disturbed by the sound of wings beating the air. Suddenly a metallic object dropped into my left hand with a light thud.

"Text! Text! Murasame is hungry too!" a voice screeched.

A pitch black crow with yellow eyes came into my view, eyeing me for food, a talking crow.

I stared at my bird friend for a good two seconds before I chuckled, "I saved you a portion over there, but eat it someplace where you can't be seen. This place is roaming with humans and demons after all."

With my words, Murasame quickly picked up a giant piece of shrimp tempura and flew off with a cheerful squawk. Turning my attention back to the phone in my hand, I begin reading the message. It was from Riko, my former travel companion and trustworthy intel.

_Riko-rin has found a Rain-kun stalker~! Someone from ( , ) has just searched every government data base for Rain-kun's information! No need to worry Rain-kun, Riko has dealt with it, but Riko wants a hot kiss or date in return~!_

_P.S. Riko will visit Rain-kun and U-chan soon!_

I couldn't help but smile wildly with delight after reading that message.

"What does it say?" Uzume questioned, noticing my excitement.

"Riko just discovered someone trying to look into our backgrounds. From the looks of it, it's someone from this school."

"Hm… That was quick. I'm guessing she denied their access?

"Yes, she did," I responded as I let out a laugh, slipping the phone into my pocket.

'_Things will get interesting now.'_

The bell finally rang. Class was starting again. It was time to observe those demons.

* * *

The school day has ended at last. Uzume and I are now walking to our new quarter with Murasame flying above us. It has been a tiring day and the crap load of homework given by the teachers did not help. The lessons were not difficult, but it was just plain boring since I've learned them long ago. The only subject that wasn't dull was history. It's always entertaining to see how fragments of the past are still being repeated today.

Throughout class, the two demons would steal small glances at Uzume and I. Both of their gazes held wariness and curiosity, and it was understandable. I am certain that they felt Uzume's aura and realized she wasn't human. She is a Sekirei, and no matter how similar a Sekirei is to a human, the power radiating from them can still be differentiated from normal humans.

Then, there was me. Sieg and the others, especially Eva, had told me many times that I was abnormal. My aura was human, but something else lingered within that aura and beings of the other side always seek out these abnormalities for varies reasons. Either way, the both of us have the demons' attention now.

After a few minutes we've finally arrived at our quarters: a standard house with two stories, four rooms and a decent size yard. I purchased the house some years ago with money I made on the battlefield and it was one of many quarters throughout the world. Most of these quarters serve as a hideout or a vacation home for my group members whenever they travel; others serve as military bases when we take on contracts. To sum it up, the chain of quarters is home to a guild formed by myself.

As we walked through the door, I threw my stuff to the side and made my way to the leather sofa in the living room. Collapsing onto the heavenly, spongy sofa, I immediately close my eyes and let out a small groan of exhaustion. Sitting in front of a board all day has drained every ounce of my energy. Boredom might have even slaughtered some of my brain cells. That place known as school was worst than hell itself, and trust me that place is not that nice.

Sleep. That is what I need right now. Tonight was Uzume's turn to make dinner and I didn't have any clients call for a contract either; therefore I was free to nap away. In a short moment, sleep dragged me into the world of dreams.

* * *

The sound of soft breathing roused me from my sleep and I lazily opened my eyes only to find them being poked by strands of dark brown hair. I then realized that I was in Uzume's embrace, with her head resting on my upper arm snuggling against my chest and her hands lighting grasping my shirt, creating small wrinkles. I couldn't help but stare at the beautiful Sekirei before me. With every breath taken, her chest would rise then fall, causing her hair to slightly move, lightly tickling my cheek. With every small movement, a bit of our warmth is exchange, granting the feeling of bliss. With every moment passing, I felt my heart beat faster, and I realized once again, just how much time can rob from you—and how little time there is left for me.

Not wanting to wake up her up, I silently untangled myself from her grip and got up. Seeing me awake, Murasame flew into the living room and sat on my left shoulder, beating his wings noisily.

"Shhh...Don't make so much noise," I ordered the crow.

Murasame gave me a nod in return.

Making my way into the kitchen, the aroma of beef stew soon reached my nostrils and my stomach growled in anticipation. I was much hungrier than I thought and it came to my notice that three spotless bowls were next to the rice cooker and pot of stew, indicating the fact that the cook herself has yet eaten.

_'We should eat together once she's up. Think there's enough time for a quick shower too.'_

"Murasame, just wait a bit until Uzume wakes up, we'll have dinner then."

"Got it!" he squawked.

With that thought in mind, I pushed aside my hunger and made my way upstairs to my room to grab a change of clothes. Before heading to the shower, I took an extra blanket from my room and journeyed downstairs again to cover the sleeping Uzume.

Returning upstairs, I left Murasame in my room and I made way to the shower while unbuttoning my shirt and belt. Halfway through my stripping, a speck of black was captured by the mirror in front me and came into my line of sight, halting my movements. I simply stared at my reflection and my eyes slowly moved from the three slanting claw marks located on my lower right lateral area to my lower left breast. There, a clock-like seal made its home. It was a black, palm sized circle with an intricate design forming inside, pulsing with hunger. Even now, I could feel it draining away my energy—draining away my life to complete its rotation. Eleven hours have been inked away and only one hour remains, implying the fact that I have no more than a year left.

At that moment, emotions that cannot be described abruptly poured out from within, suffocating then drowning me. Hands clenching into fists, muscles tensing, blood rushing, anger boiling—my surrounding rapidly dropped in temperature as layers of frost begun covering every inch of the bathroom, creating a fine wintry mist floating about. I felt the need to explode, but the flashbacks of that day shackled my anger and it diminished as quickly as it came.

I broke my gaze away from the mirror and silently laughed. Self-pity, anger, regrets—none of these emotions matter now. I've fought and survived every battle so far, I've seen both the world's cruelty and beauty, I've met many and even bonded with a few and I've wandered the path of the lost long enough. If death is the end, then I will struggle till the end; after all this was the price I have to pay for being so weak that day. If I was to lose to death, then maybe, just maybe I would be reunited with them—with _her_.

Ending my thoughts, I quickly took a failed warm shower and changed into a black casual kimono. I then went down stairs with Murasame in tow to check if Uzume was awake. Sure enough, she started to stir from her sleep and nearly fell off the sofa trying to unravel from the blanket. This is a moment I will forever remember.

"Morning," I greeted her, smirking.

"Hmn~...That was a good nap. What time is it now?" she asked, stretching and yawning.

"It's 18:30 now."

She gave me a weird look.

"I meant 6:30 p.m., so let's eat dinner," I said, striding to the kitchen with a growling stomach.

Dinner came and went peacefully. The three of us are now sitting in the patio enjoying the warm breeze of late spring in silence. Crickets tenderly filled the air with their melody and cherry blossoms danced with the gentle push of the wind. Those dancing blossoms reminded me of my dreams and _her_, but I didn't ponder it; after all, moments like these can't last forever—nothing does.

During that period of silence I felt myself being lost in the night sky among the flickering stars: the lights that have lived even before the beginning of life and have guided man during the ages of dark. They have seen it all, from man's foundation to the death and birth of each era and even the small specs of unnoticed history. The life of a star is near immortal, yet it will burn itself away one day. Even after its death, its light will still be visible for another near eternality before it finally fades to nothingness. Like a human's life, something so divine like the stars too, is defeated by the concept of time and meets its end.

Sighing inside my mind, I slowly broke my gaze away from the stars and peeked over at Uzume. She was in her own little world judging by her glazed eyes and blank expression; there was no doubt that she was thinking about her beloved, Chiho.

Inwardly smiling, I reached out my right arm and lightly flicked her forehead, catching her by surprise. She let out a noiseless 'eep' before glaring at me with a slight pout, but it soon broke into a smile. I laughed, breaking the silence. Murasame, who was nested on my left shoulder the entire time, launched himself into the air, no doubt wanting to give us some privacy and preparing for his night duty of finding possible threats around the area.

At that moment, a question popped up in my mind. "Say, Uzume, how do you feel about school so far?"

"...It's interesting, you could say. The lessons are kinda' boring and to be honest, I didn't expect so many humans of the same age range to be gathered in one place," she replied with a small smile. There was a sparkle of excitement within her light brown eyes, however a hint of sadness was evident.

Seeing that veiled pain, I could only remember Chiho's contented smile and laughter as she took her final breath that cloudless day. Chiho knew it. I knew it. Uzume knew it, too. Her disease was incurable. Medication may have prolonged the process, but it lost its efficiency overtime. Magic, too, was useless because it can only heal wounds and not diseases; even if it did work, there is no assurance of her being fully cured without side-effects. Her death was inevitable. Her dreams were meant to be unfulfilled. Yet, Uzume never blame me for her Ashikabi's death, she only blamed herself.

"Four months has passed already. We should pay her a visit once we settle in," I suggested.

A moment of silence.

"...Yeah, lets visit her," her voice trailed. "I want to tell her about all the exciting things I've encountered so far. I also want to tell her about my first day school."

That's right, enjoying a normal school life was one of Chiho's many wishes. Normality was something she greatly yearned for and she also wanted Uzume to experience it, together. But now, only Uzume will live to fulfill those dreams in her place.

"She'll be happy to hear it all, but before that I want you to stay cautious at school. I'm sure you felt it too, the irregular auras mingled among the students-those are demons. From the looks of it, a decent amount of demons dwells within the school and there are two in our class: the redhead and the women sitting on my left. If any demons approaches you, inform me immediately. Other than that, you have nothing to worry over. I doubt Minaka would make a move now; if he does, we'll take the necessary actions."

I looked over to Uzume after my lengthy speech only to find her giving me her signature smirk. The hurt in her eyes was gone, replaced with a spark of mischief.

"Rainy, has anyone ever told you that you sound like an overprotective mommy sometimes?" she asked in a teasing tone.

I grinned, "That's Sieg's role. I believe I am the troublesome little brother of the group."

"You're not that young though."

I let out a hearty chuckle at that shot. "True, I am now a retired 17 year old mercenary living in a small town, babysitting a certain Sekirei and a weird-looking crow."

Murasame must have heard my comment because a piece of bird shit suddenly fell from the sky above, falling a few feet away from me followed by an annoyed squawk. It was a threat that stated: I'll shit on your head next if you make another unnecessary comment.

"Weird looking is not bad looking, Murasame," I pointed out to the crow.

Laughter erupted next to me. It was a gentle, sweet laughter that contained happiness, hope, and life. A laugh that has been lost in sorrow for the past four months. It has finally resurfaced, and I couldn't help but smile.

We continued having small talk throughout the night until the stars faded and dawn greeted us. Uzume decided to take a shower before preparing for our second day of school and waltzed upstairs, leaving me with my thoughts. I honestly did not feel like going, but ditching on the second day would gather attention. Then again, Uzume and I will most likely nap through every class, so can't really complain.

"Murasame, fly around and do as you please. Just make sure you stay out of trouble while we're at school," I ordered, giving his head a light pat. "Also, if the demons do anything odd, inform me at once."

As the crow flew off into the distance, I took once last look at the pinkish orange sky before heading back in with a mad grin.

Today I will find prey at school to play with.

* * *

**A/N: **The first chapter is finally done, and I gotta say, it took me way too long to write that. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please give a review so I know I'm going on the right track. Also, I'm sure most of the readers have realized that some of characters mentioned in this chapter are from different anime/games, so try to guess them all!

If you have any questions, please ask and I'll answer it the best I can.

And one more thing, my OC's bio will be posted on my profile, so feel free to read it (there will be spoilers in it so don't say I didn't warn you).


	3. Chapter 2

**Bloodless**

**Chapter Two**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything except for this story and the OCs in it.**

* * *

_"I must not break."_

_I told myself that many times. So many times. _

_If I was to break, then the last chain that shackled us together would be shattered. _

_Shattered like glass. _

_Shattered like hope. _

_I would then be free. Happy. Broken._

_My memories of you would then fade away. Along with the pain. _

_The pain_—_it was the pain that kept my sanity intact. _

_It has been a long and painful journey, tiring at most_—_and lonesome. _

_But I'm sure that by the end of it, I would see you once again. _

_By that time, even if it's for the briefest moment, I would call out your name. _

_I would hug you and shed the tears that may longer exist._

_I would tell you the tales of the wars and tragedies I've wandered through. _

_And I would finally close my eyes from my own tales and fall into my long sought end._

_Maybe then, I could stop my hand from closing and crushing the flower._

_And maybe then, I could finally see the lighter shade of the crimson._

* * *

"U-zu-me, are you not sick of school yet?" I childishly asked with a pout.

Once again the two of us were sitting on the school roof-top for lunch, enjoying the gentle breeze spring offered. A full week of absolute torture has finally passed, yet it restarted again with a tiring Monday. With nothing better to do, I voiced out my displeasure to the Sekirei in front of me.

"Maa, cheer up, Rainy. It's not that bad," the brunette said with a slight mischievous look. She then reached out and gave my head a stroke.

Leaning in to her touch, I gave her another pout before sighing in defeat. "At this rate I'll die of boredom before this school year ends."

My statement speaks true. A full week of mind-numbing school has taught me nothing and I ended up napping through a good majority of them after only the second day. That being said, the teachers would actively seek me out to answer questions while Uzume, next to me, would peacefully doze off. Not sexist at all I tell you. Aside from the lessons, Uzume and I each got ourselves a fan club: a group of stalkers with too much time on their hands. They would show up the moment we walked through the school gates and follow us from a safe distance everywhere like lost puppies. Because of this, privacy at school soon became scarce.

The biggest cause of my boredom was the demons—they have yet to make any suspicious movements aside from observing us from afar. From past experiences, I was expecting some hostile reactions from them. I mean, we _are _intruding their hunting grounds. However, their actions so far have only shown their interest in blending in with the human society, which was rather odd, but only to a small degree. It was possible that these demons were ordered to do so by a higher figure to establish a base of some sort since demons are dependent on humans as a power source and humans, too, are dependent upon demons in some ways. A rather mutual relationship.

"If you're so bored then why don't get you rid of our stalkers?" the Sekirei asked. Though her expression did not show it, it was quite obvious that she was getting annoyed with the humans tailing after her everywhere.

I gave Uzume a lazy shrug. "That's impossible—those guys will come back ten times as worst if I was to use force. The main reason why they're so interested in us in the first place is because we're the new kids at school. They'll lose interest as time goes by."

'_The other reason why you're so popular aside from being the new kid is because you're hot...'_

"If you say so. Stalkers aside, did you get any information on those demons you warned me about?" Uzume asked with a concerned face that did not match her lax tone.

"Of course," I answered lethargically. "The students here are rather talkative when it comes to those demons. The woman sitting on my left in class is Souna Shitori. She's the school's current student-body president it seems. The redhead is Rias Gremory, the president of some club known as the Occult Club, and is one of the school's "Two Great Ladies." The both of them are two of the four top beauties in this school, meaning that they have a considerable amount of influence here."

"Ehhh…this means we have to be on guard at all times during school then."

"Only until we determine if they're an actual threat. Just remember that there are other demons aside from those two, like Tsubaki Shinra, the long haired woman that shows up at our classroom often and follows Souna Shitori around. They say she is the vice president of the student body and is also one of the top four beauties. There's also the other "Great Lady" and I believe her name is Akeno Himejima, and like the previous three, she is a top four ranker idolized by the majority. The "Prince of Kuoh" aka Kiba Yuuto and the school mascot, Koneko Toujou, are also idolized figures of this school."

'_Although I have yet to catch a glimpse of the previous three mentioned, the possibility of them being demons is quite high for they are part of the so called Occult Club.'_

Letting out a long whistle, Uzume leaned forward and met my eyes. "Did you pick this school on purpose knowing it's filled with demons?"

"Not at all," I replied. "The last time I came to this town was three years ago, and I don't remember it being overrun by demons. The reasons why I picked this school are because it's quite close to our base compared to the other schools and it's good for my eyes."

"Good for your eyes?" Uzume playfully arched a suspicious eyebrow.

"It used to be an all-girls school and became co-ed around last year or the year before if you can't already tell. Majority of the school population is still made up of girls given that only a handful of males took the entrance exam and passed it. Since Miya forced me to finish school, I decided that I would rather look at girls than guys, thus we transferred here."

"So, we're really here so you can look at girls all day?" she asked in a teasing tone.

"Yep. Remember that I am a healthy male, so it's perfectly normal," I responded to her question with an untroubled smile.

Uzume let out a joyful laugh at my honest answer before narrowing her eyes at me. "Rainy is a perv."

"That I am."

She laughed at my simple response as she stood up. My eyes trailed after her as she walked towards the railing. As she leaned onto the metal, a gentle waft of spring was brought forth, causing her long, chocolate brown hair to gently flutter about. The ponytail that hung loosely from the left danced in the wind. With the golden rays of sunlight shining on her from above, mixed together with the deep blue sky filled with heavenly clouds casting light shadows on her body, it was like the Sekirei before me was standing in the center of the world.

It was a rather beautiful sight, a peaceful sight to her smile so brightly with ease, yet a small part of me felt started. I was not used to this calm atmosphere nor was I used to the idea of attending school. I was used to wandering, to action, to killing, to massacring, to breaking anything and everything that got in my way. Now, the object in my hand was no longer a gun, but a pen. The bullets became the annoying students, the blood became the ink, the swords I carried became a school bag. The screams of war and death became the voices of teachers and their questions. The killer became a high school student. Strange was the only word to describe my current situation.

The peace right now felt too surreal. I felt imprisoned by it, suffocated.

I wanted to raze the school to the ground, but I can't. Not yet.

For Uzume's sake I was willing to hold back my destructive urge.

Lost in my thoughts, I returned to reality when Uzume said my name. "Oi, Rain-chan, your victims are here," she called to me with a beckoning hand.

Clearing my mind, I stood up with a slight grunt and made my way towards her, a questioning look marred my face. "They're here already?"

"Yup, look," she pointed towards the ground.

Sure enough, three male figures emerged from the main building, dashing across the school field with unusual stamina. The first running figure was a bald, sporty looking teen holding a camera tightly in his hands. The second was another teen with a scrawny figure wearing glasses that gave an unnatural glare, and the last was an average looking teen with short brown hair. Every single one of them had a lecherous grin splattered across their face along with lustful eyes. It was the school's top three perverts, the Perverted Trio—my newest toys.

"Looks like they're going for the Kendo Club this time. It has only been three days since they got their asses handed to them by the Kendo girls and they're up and running to them again for more. Their level of perversity is truly something to fear," I chuckled as a black magician spell seal floated above my right palm.

A giggle escaped Uzume's lips as her light brown eyes sparkled with excitement and mischief. "So what are you doing this time? If I remember correctly, you sling shot one of them out of school ground last time while the other two were chased by bees until the girls caught them."

"I was thinking of keeping it classical today; pits filled with frogs," I decided with a smirk.

_'The same prank I pulled on the girls during their field trip in Kyoto...how nostalgic.'_

With a flick of my wrist, the seal in my hand glowed and in the far distance, multiple seals appeared on the ground behind the preoccupied perverts. Each seal was four feet apart and varied in size, but their objective remained the same; to activate once stepped on and trap the target in a hole filled with frogs. With a dim glow, the magic seals silently faded into the ground without a trace, hidden away from the human eye.

From afar, the Perverted Trio continued on their business of peeking through a hole behind the dojo with their asses sticking up in the air, moving back and forth. A gross sight for my poor eyes.

"Uwaa! Urayama's boobs are huge!" said the baldy in a heated tone.

"80-70-81" that came from the scrawny glassed one.

"Ohhhh! This is oppai heaven!" said the third.

"Look at those fine legs!"

"Tits!"

As they swarm over the peeping hole, I looked up into the sky, grinning wickedly. "Murasame, do it."

With my words, Murasame shot down from the sky at an astonishing speed towards the three unwary perverts.

The impact came seconds later when one of them let out a girly squeal followed by screams of shock and pain.

"Ack! What the hell is this crow doing?!" the brown haired teen yelped.

"Stooop! Not the camera! The treasure of every man is stored in there!" the owner of the camera screamed in despair as Murasame flung it away with its beak.

"Oi, Matsuda this thing is attacking us because that damn bald head of yours is getting too shiny! Grow back some damn hair!" screeched the scrawny one.

"Like hell! It's attacking us because of your fuckin' glasses, take them off!" the one called Matsuda yelled back.

"Never! Without them I cannot measure their three sizes!"

"Don't claw my ass!"

From their ruckus, a new wave of shrieks erupted from inside the dojo.

"Eeek! It's a peeping tom!" a girl screamed.

"It must be those three damn perverts again!"

"Hurry, we need to catch them and teach them a lesson!" said another girl.

Outside, the three pervs heard the commotion inside and their face turned pale white.

"Shit, they heard us!" one of them realized.

"Run for it!" screamed the bald one as he quickly turned around to escape.

As the other two turned to follow, a dozen girls in kendo uniforms poured out of the dojo with expressions of pure anger. Each and every one of them held a shinai at hand as they dashed towards the three fleeing males.

Seeing the main show beginning, I grinned like a madman and whispered a new order, "Murasame, come back."

With one final peck and squawk, Murasame launched itself back into the air and landed onto my outreached arm. Giving the crow's head a light pat, I return my attention back to the show below with absolute glee.

The first victim that fell into a pit was the first runner, in other words the bald one.

"What the hell?! Where did this hole come from—ahhh frogs?!" the bald teen shouted, his tone filled with shock and fear. "Guys, help me! Frogs, there are frogs in here!"

Hearing his fellow comrade's plea for help, the brown haired teen ran forward with an outreached hand, except, he too fell into a pit. "Wahh! There's a pit here too?!"

"Guys, hurry up and get out of there, the girls are right behind us!" said the only unfallen one in a frantic tone as he turned his head back and forth between the two.

"Can't you see we're tryin'—noooo, don't lick me!" screamed the bald teen as countless frogs began jumping onto him, mercilessly whipping out their tongues to attack the giant that unintentionally tried to squash them.

In the next pit, the brown haired perv too, was being jumped by waves of amphibians trying to escape. A few of the amphibians made their way inside his clothing, causing him to scream out in panicking horror, "Get out dammit! Don't go in my pants! A girl hasn't even touched it yet, so get your slimy ass out of there! Don't touch the maker!"

'_...Did he just refer to his sex organ as the maker?'_

Next to me, Uzume answered my unanswered question. "He called his penis the maker, ha."

"There they are!" came a girl's yell as she raised her shinai to attack one of the trapped teens.

Desperation or maybe it was instincts or a mix of both must've kicked in because the two trapped teen managed to scramble their way out of the pit to dodge the oncoming slashes of countless shinais only to fall into another.

""Again!?""

"Ah! One of the perverts is here! Attack!"

The chaos continued. Every member the Pervert Trio got a taste of pits and frogs, their shrieks of agony echoed throughout the field. Members of the Kendo Club were not spared either as girls frightened by the small amphibians ran into each other in a mass of confusion, resulting in more traps activating. All of them let out erotic screams and moans as slimy, croaking creatures invaded their clothes. It was rather a pleasing view if you subtract the guys.

Back at the roof-top I was shaking with constrained laughter as I sat back down, leaning against the railing. Uzume was holding her stomach in pain as she gasped for air. Her body trembled as she tried to stop laughing, but the snorts and giggles continued to be heard. She was enjoying this way more than I was.

"If you laugh so hard, the food from earlier will come out," I said softly, ignoring the light cries and croaks in the background.

Taking several deep breaths, Uzume signed weakly before wiping a tear from her eye. "T-that was almost too much."

"Please, this is nothing yet. I still have many, _many_ more ideas to try out," I said darkly, feeling a smirk on my face. Countless pranks were already forming inside my mind. This school will be my playground until my objective is fulfilled. When I finish with this place, I will hunt down a shitty black haired brat that dared to question me about school in front of Miya. Because of him, I was lectured/harassed by Miya for months before I soundly caved in to her request; graduate school like a "normal" person.

The word "normal" never existed in my dictionary.

_'Just you wait Minato...I'll make sure to feed you to the wolves the next time I see you again. Even your Sekirei will not be able to save your sorry ass.'_

My plot for revenge against that idiot of an Ashikabi was put to a halt when the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and the beginning of the next class.

I did not feel like going, thus I was not going.

"Uzume, you can go to class if you want, I'll stay here," I told the brunette as she grabbed her school bag off the floor.

I was expecting some kind of surprised or angry reaction, but instead, she gave me a small pout. "If you aren't there, the teacher would definitely pick on me and disturb my nap."

"Ha, now you will know how I feel whenever they harass me for answers," I said with a smirk. "The next class is English, right?"

As she nodded to the question, I tossed a notebook from my bag at her. Uzume easily caught it with a hand and gave me a questioning look.

"The answer key. Today the annoying teacher will start lesson 12 so if you get picked, just read off page 14," I lazily explain as I patted my bag down to use as a pillow. "I believe our demon neighbor and some humans are beginning to catch on to our message tapping in class. They will expose use sooner or later. Also, if the teacher asks why I'm not in class, tell her I'm taking a nap outside."

Uzume smirked as she walked off, swinging her back in a wide arc. "How heartless of you to leave me in a room filled with stalkers and demons."

I playfully scoffed at her statement, "Just mingle with the humans and enjoy what little they offer. Murasame will watch over you from afar, if anything was to happen I will know immediately.

"In that case sweet dreams, Rainy," she whispered softly as she closed the door behind. The sound of her fading footsteps was slowly lost as the second bell rang, indicating the start of class.

Looking back at the closed door I smiled to myself. "I leave her in your care, Murasame."

"Roger!" the crow squawked as he launched into the air again, leaving behind a single black feather to drift in the wind.

_'Sweet dreams, huh...'_

Letting out a small breath, I stared blankly into the white clouded sky, like always; it gave off a calming presence that could sooth my very soul. After a full minute, drowsiness took over and my mind succumbed to the world of nightmares.

* * *

I stirred from the world of dreams when the door suddenly swung open, followed by the sound of footsteps belonging to two people—no, two demons.

"Ara, I was not expecting to see someone up here," said a feminine voice.

"Is something wrong, Buchou?" asked another feminine voice from behind her.

Opening my eyes, I gradually sat up and turned towards the now opened door, giving the two intruders a lazy impassive stare.

My hunch was right, it was two demons. Rias Gremory, the redhead from my class stood before me in an elegant manner, her blue eyes showed hints of surprise, but it was soon replaced by interest and curiosity. She offered a sweet smile as she took a step forward; her demon aura became even further suppressed. Behind her, a woman I've never seen before followed the redhead after gently closing the door. She had long black hair that was tied in a neat pony tail with an orange ribbon, violet eyes that held a glint of mischief, and a rather buxom figure that could rival the redhead's. But something felt off about her though. She had an aura of a demon yes, but there was something else mixed within that aura, like there was two different beings mixed in one.

_'She definitely gives off a strange aura for a demon; I ought to look into this later. Not to mention, her innocent and lady-like posture reminds me of someone...'_

They were both staring at me now, and I stared back impassively until a small smile made way to my face. "The springs in Japan are certainly great, here; I can see blossoming beauties that can rival Venus herself. Tell me beautiful ladies, what brings you here to this lonesome roof-top?" I asked with a curious tone.

"Ara ara, he certainly knows how to praise a girl," said the black haired woman as she smiled and place a hand on her cheek, covering a light blush. I felt a chill mentally running down my body when I saw the glint in her eyes along with her smile.

Suddenly, I knew who she reminds me of now. There was only one person—spirit that goes 'ara ara' and fake an innocent face that I know of, and that was Kurumi. There was little doubt that the smiling demon here is hiding her true personality behind that innocent act.

Before I could further analyze the black haired demon, the other demon stepped in. "You are Karino-san, am I right? May I ask why you are up here? Normally students are not allowed to be up here since it's against school regulations," the redhead asked, her tone filled with interest.

"I'm ditching," I answered bluntly, causing both females to widen their eyes in slight shock.

"Ufufu, this one is quite honest. If you don't mind me asking, why you are ditching class?" the black haired women questioned, this time covering her mouth to hold back a giggle.

Instead of answering, I pointed to the sky. "There is no reason to be sitting through a dull lecture when you can nap under the sky's shade and relax in spring's color. When spring ends and summer comes, the sky itself will change along with its seasons. Spring may come again next year, but it will never be the same as the previous, for time is a variable that brings change whether one wants it or not, it does not wait on anyone or anything. There is also no telling if this may be the last spring one may experience, so might as well enjoy it while it's within reach, am I right?"

A stunned silence followed after I finished my meaningless speech.

Rias was the first to recover as she gave me a stunning smile that would've caused any normal male to blush madly. "My, aren't you a philosophical one, Karino-san. And indeed, the little changes are always overlooked, and because of this regret linger in those who notice the changes too late."

The black haired demon did not say anything; instead she eyed me with interest with an unchanging smile.

"There is no need to be so formal Redhead-chan, please, call me Sang. We are in the same year after all, not to mention classmates. That applies to you too, Orange ribbon-chan," I casually told the demons.

"Ah, how rude of us to not properly introduce ourselves, my name is Rias Gremory, president of the Occult Club, it is a pleasure to meet you, Sang-san," said the redhead as she gracefully bowed, not minding the fact that I called her a redhead.

"Ufufu, and my name is Akeno Himejima, vice president of the Occult Club. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Sang-san," said the demon as she too, bowed elegantly. Like Rias, she showed little negative reaction to the name I called her earlier.

_'So she's the second "Great Lady" of the school...'_

"The pleasure is mine," I replied as I got up to returned their bows. It was at that moment that I realized class was ending soon. Not wanting Uzume to deal with the hormonal humans alone, I decided to end my little chat with the demons and be on my way even though a part of me was reluctant to go without stirring up some trouble.

"Although I would love to continue chatting with you beautiful ladies, I must be on my way to pick up a friend. Goodbye for now," I said sweetly, giving the two a wink as I waltzed past them to the door.

Along the way to the classroom, the phone in my pocket abruptly went off.

* * *

"Sang Karino-san, please report to the Student Council Office. Again, Sang Karino-san, please report to the Student Council Office."

My dreams of a wonderful nap after lunch came crashing down when that announcement was made. It was only moments ago when the bell rang, signaling the end of Japanese History—35 seconds ago to be more precise when that announcement came through and foiled my godly plans on this not-so-fine-anymore Wednesday. What a pain. Monday the demons came to me, now Wednesday I go to the demons.

"Rain," Uzume called out from the side in a quiet tone, "What did you do to those demons for them to call you out like that?"

"Who knows," I replied, ignoring the murmurs from the nosey students in the classroom, "It doesn't look like I can ignore it."

'_There are several possible reasons that I can come up with, but still, it's too soon to be called out because of it.'_

"Should I go with you?" she asked, her features set in a frown and her eyes filled with unsettled worry. I never told Uzume about my encounter with the demons that Monday, but she somehow concluded the idea that they made a move. Her protective mode was turned on as a result.

"No," I instantly replied as I slowly stood up. "They wouldn't attack me on the first meeting, especially not on school grounds. There are too many humans here."

Uzume did not look convinced, but slowly she nodded.

To assure her worries, I gave her a laidback grin and reached over to pat her head. "I'll be fine. Go enjoy lunch with those girls over there. They invited you a few times, but you turned them down for me so you ought to make up for it. If anything was to happen, I'm already well prepared for it."

She caught my hint. The worry that clouded her eyes drifted away and her signature smirk surfaced. "I forgot the fact that you're a walking armory."

"That is a fact that you should never forget," I smirked back, silently reaching for my collar.

* * *

With my hands in my pockets, I casually strolled towards the Student Council room. Along the way, students from different classes would steal glances at me and whisper to their friends. The word 'recruitment' kept coming up and I had a good idea why. From what I've gathered in the last few days, students with the best performances are usually asked to join the Student Council which was logical since they are the leaders and role models of the school. As leaders, they must help teachers maintain order at school by solving issues caused by students and organize events for the rest of the students.

'_I doubt the idea of them trying to recruit me. My grades may be good, but my attendance is quite the opposite.'_

My stroll came to an end when I reached a door with a plain, yet operative silver sign that said 'Student Council' hanging over it. Before I could reach out and knock, the door suddenly opened and a female demon with noticeable white hair and blue-green eyes stood before me with a rather startled look. The surprise did not last long as she gathered herself and bowed.

"My apologies senpai, I did not mean to do that," she said politely.

_'A junior, huh.'_

"It's fine, I should be the one apologizing for startling you," I said with a smile.

In response to my reply, the girl beamed a lovely smile and turned around. "Kaichou, he's here."

A two second silence filled the air before a cold, authoritative voice cut through from a distance, "Please let him in, Hanakai-san."

As the one called Hanakai moved aside for me to enter, I offered her another smile before walking through the door in a nonchalant manner.

The moment I stepped into the air-conditioned room, seven pairs of eyes watched me, one belonging to the bespectacled demon that sat next to me in class.

Souna Shitori, my dear left neighbor sat behind a large desk with a bearing of professionalism; back straight, hands clamped together with a serious expression that spoke business. The aura around her was as dignified as ever. Beside her stood Tsubaki Shinra, and like the former, she had on a stern, cold expression like an Ice Queen.

_'You can so tell who's the demon boss here...if this was a video game, I wonder how much EXP I'll gain from defeating her.'_

The other females that I have never seen before, aside from Hanakai were scattered throughout the room. Each and every one of them were doing different task from reading, to filing documents, to homework, to paperwork. Their attention at the moment however, was focused on me instead of the work sitting on their desk.

As I drew closer, the Shitori demon pointed to the chair in front of her, "Have a seat."

With a small nod, I took the seat and leaned back onto the chair with one of my arms on the armrest supporting the hand that my chin rested on. The two cold beauties before me did not look pleased with my informal posture of seating, but said nothing. And being the upstart I was, I decided to make the first move of adding more oil to the already igniting fire. "If you're here to talk to me about the sexist treatment the teachers are giving me, I'm all ears, yo."

A silence followed when I said that statement.

A deadly silence followed by a variety of reactions.

Souna Shitori merely arched an eyebrow.

Tsubaki Shinra narrowed her eyes and frowned.

As for the reactions of the others, I couldn't really tell since they were behind me, but I did hear a few gasps.

"No, that is not the case," Shitori replied as she stared straight into my eyes, her tone frosted with calmness, "The _reasons_ why you are called here regards to your numerous _unexcused_ absences and _violation _of the school rules."

_'Ah, busted.'_

"So we're not talking about the sexist teachers? Shame, it's a good topic to talk about," I playfully said with a slight grin, noticing a glint of annoyance in Shitori's eyes. I was _so _going to enjoy this.

Souna Shitori continued, completely ignoring my previous remarks, "Over the last few days, you've missed a total of six classes, all which are unexcused. The teachers have called you out for it, yet you continue to act as you please. There have also been several reports of you and another student actively going up to the roof-top which is against the school rules. Do you have anything to say about this, Karino-san?"

"Nothing, really; my grades in those classes are more than passable so I don't really see the issue here," I replied in a laidback tone, ignoring the rising tension in the room. "Also, the reason why I'm on the roof-top in the first place is to escape the persistent stalkers—if it's a big deal then I'll control myself to not go there. Maybe."

When I said that, both demons gave me a look that would make any average human flinch in utter fear. Their expressions were beyond cold as they narrowed their eyes once again in a calculative manner, but I did not waver; instead I stared right back—sending them an invitation to challenge me. After all, compared to Miya's hannya mask and Eva's satanic, bloodthirsty glare, this was hardly anything.

My bravery appeared to have impressed Shitori because a hint of respect flashed between her captivating violet eyes before the impassive stare returned.

She then cleared her throat. "Your grades may not be an issue in this case; however, as a student of Kuoh Academy, such behavior is improper. Not to mention, your poor attendance may begin to influence other students negatively."

Her words caught my attention, "Oh? Is that so? Do you have any evidence to back up that claim, Shitori-san?" I asked as I felt my own gaze narrowing into her violet orbs.

At that moment, the tension in the air skyrocketed. Gasps of unease echoed throughout the room. Quickening heartbeats thundered in my ears—beats of confusion, admiration, apprehension, and trepidation. It was a rich melody; a melody that spoke a truth, a truth of authority. That authority belonged to this violet eyed demon. And I, a human, was questioning her authority.

Souna Shitori did not answer my question. Instead I answered for her: "The answer is no, right?"

Without waiting for her response, I continued, "It is hard to believe that a transfer student that has only been here for eight days could sway a group's pattern. After all, humans are creatures of habit; any sudden changes would bring about discomfort. Furthermore, it's all a matter of choice. Anyone who chose to follow my example is simply making their own choice so the fault is not mine."

Another silence followed.

Still in a state of calm, Souna Shitori finally opened her mouth, "Agreeable as your logic may be, you are still a student here, what more a third-year. As a senior, the responsibility of leading the younger students still applies. Your current behavior will eventually cause trouble further down in the future unless it is fixed, and if continued the punishment will be severe."

My blood was racing with excitement now. This demon was actually making a threat to remove me from school. She believed that such a weak threat would make me give in to her control. She actually believed that I feared being kicked out of this shit place known as school. Oh, how wrong she was.

With a lazy grin splattered across my face, I attacked her words. "Your warning means nothing to me, Shitori-san."

I had angered her. Annoyance flashed in the demon's violet eyes again and this time her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at me coolly. Behind her, Tsubaki Shinra glared at me passively, but her hidden rage was easily seen. Once again, I did not falter and went on, "Unless evidence is presented to support the claim that I, Sang Karino, am leading students of Kuoh Academy astray by ditching class, the Student Council has no right to interfere with my actions."

I stood up, placing a hand on her desk slightly leaning forward. "If you're displeased with it, feel free to suspend me; I can always use another day off. But know this, if you were to make a move now, then you yourself are breaking the school regulations—regulations that I could care less about."

My words have baited a demon. Tsubaki Shinra, who was silently listening to our talk the entire time was about to open her mouth to contend, but a raised hand from Souna Shitori stopped her. The wintry violet eyes never left my eyes and a dead silence filled the tensioned air.

Finally, she spoke. "What do you mean by that, Karino-san?"

I smirked at her question before answering. "In paragraph seven, subsection four of the school rules, it states that unless a student has over ten unexcused absences action cannot be taken against the said student. Any further absences will need to be excused by either a guardian or doctor, if not; the student will be suspended for a certain period of time and depending on the circumstances, expelled." I paused briefly allowing the information to flow. "Earlier you said that I have a total of six unexcused absences. _Six_. This means that I still have four more absences before the regulation gets involved. So trying to "fix" my actions now would mean violating the regulations that you care so much about. Not to mention, it would also be your own undoing, President-san."

A staring contest was the reward I earned by smashing apart the demon's argument. Souna Shitori now eyed me carefully like a hawk seeking an opportunity to swoop in and attack its prey. Her look of concentration was quite cute as the gears inside her head failed to come up with a good counter. It was my win.

Giving the two demons one final look, I turned around and stride towards the door, ignoring the shocked gaze of the remaining demons. My eyes however, caught sight of a laptop sitting in front of a slim demon with long braided brown hair, and matching eyes.

The school did not provide students with laptops, only desktops. This laptop here was privately owned. It was then that Riko's text message came back to me. I was certain now. This demon here was the one that searched up Uzume and me on our first day—my so called stalker.

Stopping three feet from the exit, I shot a look at the browned haired demon. A startled looked filled with caution and confusion appeared on her features as she stared back at me quietly. I smirked inwardly at her cluelessness. "You know if you want to know about me, you can just come ask me directly. There is no need to search me up."

My words hit gold when her brown eyes widened in realization. She opened and closed her mouth like a fish caught on land, unable to speak. Without looking back, I closed the door behind me. I then gleefully strolled down the hallway with my hands in my pockets, my mood refreshed. Walking into a demon's lair has never been so enjoyable.

* * *

"Raven will be here tonight."

"Huh?" was Uzume's reply as she stared at me with a baffled gaze.

It was now Thursday evening 16:25 p.m. The tiresome school day has ended not long ago and the three of us are now returning to the base. Along the way I've decided to inform Uzume of our special guest tonight.

"Raven," I said once again, throwing a silvery coin in the air for Murasame to catch. "Karasuma Kurona, the raven yokai: drifter, information broker, and one of collaborators that helped us raid the MBI quarter. She called two days before, informing me of her visit. Most likely dropping by to check up on us and bring updated news on that idiot."

Uzume smiled brightly when she heard my words. "So Kuro-chin is visiting, huh. Are we going to have a feast tonight then?"

Up in the air Murasame squawked in delight when it heard the word 'feast'.

"Feast! Murasame wants a feast!" it went on as it dropped the silver coin into my palm.

_'What a simple-minded crow...'_

The fallen coin danced on my palm with small twirls. Different shades of silver could be seen as the evening lights and shadows reflect on it, but slowly it succumbed to the laws of gravity. Its dance died away, leaving behind a motionless piece of aluminum. Staring at it, I let out a small quiet laugh and closed my eyes. My senses tingled and a light shudder was felt.

_'...Either my body is failing me or something is up.'_

"Pick her up at the station first before going grocery shopping," I told Uzume and Murasame with a grin as I decided to ignore the unusual sensation for the time being. "That way she can help carry some of the bags and we can have a feast. I'm taking up a contract this evening so I will be late. Feel free to eat without me."

The both of them vigorously cheered after hearing my consent. Murasame even looped in the air with his klutzy balance.

We arrived at the base two minutes later and the moment we walked in, I hurled my school bag across the living room. The homework stuffed schoolbag landed on the leather sofa with a soft thud and bounced onto the floor with a louder thud. Ignoring my mess, I hurried upstairs to change out of the troublesome uniform and into something more casual: a black shirt with a pair of black slacks. I then lazily swept a hand through my hair and slid my bangs behind my ear allowing the seven piercings to be visible. Now _this _was comfort.

During my moment of calm, a light draining sensation starting from my left breast spread throughout my body. It was not painful, just tiring and like always, I ignored it. It was normal. I was dying. With a sigh, I reached for the small pendant around my neck and made sure it was fastened correctly. If anything was to happen during this job, then I would need a form of defense to secure victory. It was best to be prepared. Lack of preparation would result in death. I cannot die, not yet. Not until Uzume find another to sprout her wings for.

Finishing my preparations, I mentally went over my plan for the day. Uzume will pick up Raven while I contact the client about the job. The client was a middle aged mother that has been trying to find the whereabouts of her teenage son that has been missing approximately thirteen days ago. In spite of their efforts, the police has yet to find any leads, thus, the mother decided to hire outside help. The contract was simple; if I find her son—dead or alive, the contract was complete and she must pay the demanded price. I intended to bring Murasame along at first, but it was wiser to leave it with Uzume. Ling, my other partner has yet to wake from her coma so I was alone this time. It may take longer than usual but I was excited even though it's only a ranked D mission. This was way better than sitting in class and having a certain violet eyed demon glare at you for every little action. Hell, I'm all about action.

Running a hand through my hair one more time, I headed out after bidding a quick farewell to Uzume. The train Raven's on will not arrive until 16:55 p.m. so Uzume had time to spare before heading over to the station.

With a deep breath, I launched myself onto air. A sensation of freedom greeted me.

Mission start.

* * *

**A/N:** First, I would like to apologize to all my readers for having to wait so long. I've been rather busy during summer (still am) and didn't have the time to post new chapters, but it's here now! This chapter was suppose to be much longer, but I've decided to save the action for the next chapter that will be posted really soon so please be patient.

And now some answers to those questions!

**Q:** What's up with Uzume's situation?

**A: **Uzume is an unwinged Sekirei at the moment the reason being that Chiho never winged her before she died. She managed to become a free Sekirei after Rain got her out of the city.

**Q: **Will Uzume get winged by Rain?

**A: **Maybe, I'm still thinking it through _'

**Q: **Rain's a bit too OP yeah?

**A: **I admit that Rain's OP but please remember that his powers are has a time seal that's sucking away his life whenever he uses his powers so Rain's basically a sitting duck. Also, even with his seals removed Rain cannot utilize his magic/abilities fully because he is only a half Noble (the Noble race will be introduced in the later future). As someone has pointed out earlier, Rain has a war-like nature mixed in him so he can be a loose cannon at times which results in him losing control of his powers.

**Q: **Is six pawn pieces really enough?

**A:** I'll be changing that.

I hope this have answered some of your questions. If you more questions feel free to ask away! Please read/enjoy/review!


	4. Chapter 3

**Bloodless**

**Chapter Three**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything except for this story and the OCs in it.**

* * *

Two hours, fifteen minutes and thirteen seconds has passed. I was now searching the final destination on my list: the abandoned mansion located on the outskirt town. It was far from the client's home, but there was a possibility of a clue being found here since this area is deserted of adult supervision. Children, no matter the age sought for adventure and independence meaning that isolated places like this mansion can serve as a secret base. The useless police force never considered searching this place due to the time and distance.

Inside the abandoned mansion the smell of death was apparent. Decaying wood and moist dust particles lingered the air, burying away the broken, scattered furniture. With every step I take, a fine footprint was left behind in the snow-like dust and the wooden surface groaned painfully, signifying that a trespasser has invaded this no man land. My gloved hands trailed the rough walls as I walked down the stairs, my senses strained with concentration, seeking out the foul smell of decomposing flesh. The smell got worse the further down I went and finally I reached the bottom.

The clue was found.

In the center of the basement living room human remains were scattered about. Bones of every size, some whole, some broken so cleanly that a butcher would envy the doer, were cluttered around in a maze like pattern. Bits and pieces of flesh melted onto the bones as they drowned in small puddles of crimson, silently rotting away. Intestines littered not only the ground, but also the nearby walls and ceiling in bloody masses, slowly sliding down, leaving behind a trail of wet gore. Blood and other bodily acids painted every inch of the room dripped down at a sluggish pace. With every fallen drip, an echo was left behind, producing a rich, calm melody in this tainted room of slaughter. Skulls ripped of its teeth were piled in a far corner in the form of a throne waiting for its maker. Maggots swarmed the ground in waves, wiggling away in the putrid flesh in utter joy while flies buzzed in the heavy air moving from flesh to flesh like a bee to flowers.

Carnage. That was the only word that could describe this scene of hunger. The thing that feasted here was clearly not human.

Carelessly swiping away a drop of blood that landed on my shirt, I picked up several bones and examined them. Multiple bite marks could be seen and hairline fractures decorated the bones with small amounts of torn flesh and blood buried in between. The level of decomposition was around one to three weeks old—around the time of the son's disappearance. Looking around the room once more, I calculated an estimate of eleven bodies, most which appears to be the size of humans between the age of fifteen and twenty. The client's son is most likely here, mixed with the other victims. He was most likely lured in by some kind of man eating yokai or beast and got shredded apart. It was a common case in large cities and averaged sized towns. My job was done.

Once I was outside, I busied myself with spells to clean my shirt and boots that had been bloodied. It was a job well done for I've searched ten locations previously that offered no hints of the missing teen. Like always, once I finished cleaning myself I then focused on erasing any evidence of my visit. It was a habit that has grown on me during my years as a mercenary due to the terrible experience of past mistakes involving the mafia, fun times. Grinning at my completed feat, I turned around and waltz out of the abandoned property like nothing happened while whistling a merry tune. Life was good at the moment.

* * *

While I leisurely strolled about the empty streets to return to the base, my hungered mind along with my empty stomach wandered into its own world. I was starving.

To endure the hunger, I silently preoccupied my mind with a game of chess. Knight takes bishop. Queen takes knight. Pawn to G5...check_—_

The game was never finished as a sudden bloodlust sent my instincts into a state of frenzy.

Danger was coming.

And it came moments later _—_in the form of a massive shock wave that demanded death.

Pulsing with inhuman might, quaking the once calmed air, it twisted up a vicious howl as it descended upon me.

A tenth of a second later, the shockwave was four feet away from me.

Then three feet.

Then two feet.

Until finally, one feet.

But by then I was already prepared.

I called out my most trusted partner.

"Shatter the sky and reign, **Skymaster**."

The soft whisper was never heard for the sky above roared.

A roar so thunderous and grand, it threatened to tear reality apart.

A blinding white light followed.

And in that single moment, I took a single step forward, lifting my right hand up.

In that hand, a glass particle about the size of a marble was swirling about.

Then, it shattered.

It shattered into countless smaller particles, but it continued to swirl at an even greater velocity.

With a single burst of energy, a long translucent blade, a dark blue hit and a violet handle materialized. With its emergence, the sky once again howled as the blade darkened a pale black, reflecting my aggravated mood.

Grasping the sword tightly with my right, I swung down vertically at the oncoming shockwave that would've cleanly cleaved my body in half.

An explosion was the result of the head on collision. Trees toppled. Buildings collapsed. Dust danced. The surrounding area soon became a ruin.

With a limited view, I stood motionless in the cloud of dust, sword and body ready to bounce at a moment's notice. A moment passed and my senses picked up a presence handing softly on a still standing post up ahead-a familiar presence.

Audibly letting out a sigh, I slashed apart the cloud of dust with a flick of my wrist.

"That was not a nice greeting," I grumbled, slowly looking up at my attacker.

Her bloodthirsty narrowed grey eyes were the first features I took sight of, followed by a long, pale, white scar running down the right of her neck. Her once long, grey hair was now shortened in multiple layers, carelessly swayed in the wind. She was clad in the Disciplinary Squad uniform consisting of a tight leather top, and a black miniskirt with black stockings. A grey haori with a black Sekirei crest covered her shoulders like a cape. In her hand, she held an unsheathed nodachi.

Like a grim reaper, Sekirei No.4 Karasuba stood before me with a smile of lunacy spattered across her face.

Silence followed as we stared at each other. I looked up, she looked down. It was a deadly silence until finally, I decided to break it.

"Since Matsu never contacted me, I'm guessing she's either dead or that you left without that shit head's permission for some personal reasons," I lazily stated, lowering Skymaster. "So tell me _Crow_, why are you here? Did you want another makeover from me that badly?"

Her answer to my provocative questions was an amused sneer, but hidden anger flashed between her eyes. "That monkey mouth of yours is untamed like always. My reason for being here is simple; to finish our battle." She raised her sword. "And don't you dare think I will let you escape this time."

With that simple statement, she charged forth with blinding speed, her blade arced through the air, whistling as it traveled its path of death. But I was not there to greet it, instead I sidestepped her attack. I then swiftly swung down my blade at her unguarded back only to have her twist out of its way and counter with an upward slash of her own. Our blades clashed. Sparks flew and our bloodlust was let loose.

"Is that really the reason? I asked, slightly grinning at her crimson turned eyes as our blades locked. "I get the feeling the real reason why you're here is because of the souvenir I left you from our last battle. From the looks of it, even MBI's praiseworthy technology could only heal it to a small degree." I eyed the scar running down her neck. "That scar_—_the scar inflicted by Murasame will not disappear no matter what you do, Karasuba."

Karasuba's eyes narrowed murderously when those words were spoken. The reaction was enough to tell me that I've stabbed her sore spot; her pride. Karasuba, Sekirei No.4 was a prideful creature. She valued strength and held with high regards that the Sekirei race stood above the human race. To her humans are weak creatures with little to no value, yet she was defeated by one. That said human, me, left her on the brink of death and even marked her with a lifelong scar. A scar that will forever remind her of the humiliating defeat she experienced. It was enough to enrage her and it was enough to have her seek me out to finish the battle she lost. It was vengeance.

Growling, she pushed away my blade with a sudden burst of energy and aimed a kick at my abdomen. I dodged the kick with a small leap back, all while giving her a mocking grin.

"I admit that I underestimated you the first time but I won't make the same mistake twice, Monkey." She said those words calmly, but danger oozed from every syllable. "I'll end your miserable life painfully, but before that I hope you will entertain me with a proper battle."

Once again, she lunged forward towards me with a murderous battle cry. The madness of her smile as she stabbed her nodachi towards my neck was suitable for a nightmare.

The grey haori fluttered behind her majestically as her nodachi reached my neck within moments. Maneuvering my sword to block the critical strike, I swiftly threw out a leg, rendering her balance for just a moment. She recovered her stance in a split-second, but that small moment was all I needed.

_**"White Lightning."**_

With a roar, a massive lightning bolt dropped down from the sky directly at Karasuba.

The ground beneath shattered from the bolt's impact and a deafening explosion followed. It engulfed the Black Sekirei in white as I quickly retreated to a safer distance.

Dust particles blinded my vision and I held Skymaster close, already chanting away another spell. A stinging cut appeared on my right shoulder. It was a deep cut for the shirt sleeve did a poor job of absorbing the crimson liquid causing it to sluggishly drip down my arm. I paid it no heed as I could feel the cells in my body clotting up the wound.

The attack managed to hit her head on, but I was not out of Death's grip yet.

In the next movement Karasuba emerged from the dust cloud. Her sword was literally smoking, her clothes tattered, her body lightly bruised, yet a gleeful grin lit up her face. She looked like a child that has stumbled upon wonderland.

_'She sliced apart the lightning...seems like elemental attacks are useless here-'_

Our blades met again, but this time I was slammed back into a wall by her ferocious force.

Pain shook my entire body and vision went black for a single moment. A metallic taste filled my mouth and I found my teeth sinking into my lips to force down a grunt of pain. Pieces of cement buried themselves into the pierced flash of my back destroying my lovely shirt. Damn, talk about back pain.

"Looks like I don't have to force you to be serious, excellent," Karasuba purred, locking her sword with mine.

Narrowing my eyes at her I silently analyzed my situation.

The chances of victory was 50-50, I could win if I remove some seals but my body would not be able to handle it. I would die as a result. Another method was to catch her off guard and deliver a clean killing blow. Difficult but not impossible. The last method was to flee and get back up. Ideal as that plan may be Uzume and Raven cannot defeat Karasuba. Murasame certainly can, but the cost would be too great, the little town of Kuoh would be no more.

_'Looks like plan two is the choice of the day.'_

"Karasuba," I gave her a sinister grin, my mind refocused on the battle. "I wouldn't stand there if I were you."

Her eyes widened in alarm just as a thorn of ice shot out from the earth beneath her. She leaped out of its way just in time as it missed her throat by a few millimeters, but that was not the end of it for more and more ice thorns broke tore out from the ground all aiming to pierce her body apart.

She evaded each thorn skillfully, slicing and dicing away any thorns that got in her path, however I continued to summon more ice to meet her blade preventing her from reaching me. It was beginning to drain my magic, but I needed to wear her down and find a hole in her defense before my body reached its limit.

With sword in hand, I launched myself into the air and attacked from above. Enveloping Skymaster with a fine layer of dark mist, I swung it down vertically with all my might.

_**"Void Slash."**_

A pure black projectile was released from the blade, slicing away towards the occupied Karasuba with blinding speed, whistling freely while destroying everything in its path.

Another explosion took place and this time, nothing was spared of its destruction. Anything object that had a proper shape formerly was now just dust particles dancing away in the air, yet it was still not over.

"Yes! This is more like it!" Karasuba crackled with excitement as she surfaced from a pile of rubble. Small cuts covered her body entirely and a bigger cut marked her chest, bleeding heavily. Her blood painted the ground like a canvas, but she just laughed. It was a laugh that held a beastly hunger for blood. "I'm seriously excited now. So damn excited!"

She slowly straightened her trembling body whilst I prepared another assault to detach her head from her body.

The blade was just centimeters away from the side of her neck—it was close—victory was close.

However, the next moment became a blur.

Yes, just a blur.

I wasn't even able to make a sound when I felt coldness penetrate my abdomen.

There was no pain. No nothing until I saw my own reflection in a pair of red orbs belonging to a bruised, pale face.

Her face was inches from mine, so close that the warmth of her breaths were felt.

She grinned as my blood spattered her face, pushing her sword further into my stomach.

_'Fast. She's faster than before. I couldn't even enforce a barrier in time, dammit...!'_

Instincts took over next.

My foot slammed into her stomach sending her flying.

As she was forced back, her sword was ripped out of my flesh.

Pain—Intense pain.

Blood poured from the open wound rapidly and disorderly like a waterfall, forcing me to desperately clog it with a layer of ice.

My moment of weakness allowed my opponent to counter and counter she did.

"You let your guard down, monkey," she said sadistically, arching the long blade my way.

Grimacing, I swiftly backed away, parrying the blow intended for my chest.

"Not bad," I said with a glare. I could now feel the blood filling my lungs and dripping down my chin sluggishly. "You won't find a boyfriend at this rate if you're this aggressive though."

The Sekirei just smirked dangerously and readied her blade again. Another attack came and this time, I barely managed to block it.

My breaths were ragged now and the previous wounds that should've been long healed were opened and bleeding freely. My arms felt like lead and my legs trembled ever so slightly from my own weight. My speed too, has decreased noticeably.

It did not take much to know that my body has reached its limit.

My odds of surviving this battle has lowered to a great degree, all because I've failed to kill her quickly.

It was a losing battle now, but unsurprisingly, a smile formed on my bloodied lips.

I was excited. Excited not because I was in Death's reach, but because I was fighting Karasuba, a worthy warrior that could rival Miya.

Really, she was an opponent that I would love to fight freely...if only I was not hell bound by the time seal, if only.

Clenching the translucent blade with trembling hands, I raised it to a side, its tip tilted towards the ground. Magic channeled through the blade causing it to light up with an unholy white light. Soon, lightning pulsed from the blade, filling the air with the smell of ozone. My body arched forward, lowering slightly in a position ready for a burst dash.

This was it—my final stand.

It was do or die.

As if reading my mood, Karasuba herself also smirked and fell into another battle stance.

A tense silence followed as the two of us just stared into each other's eyes, crimson and red.

Our grins widened. An unspoken understanding sparked between us as our blood boiled with uncontained anticipation: only one of us will step out of this battle alive.

A second passed our breaths became even and synchronized.

The next second dust kicked up from our battle charge.

The third second swords collided and sparks flew.

Countless blows were exchanged. For every attack I executed, Karasuba countered them with a blow of her own. The momentum of our attacks were so quick that it became a blur of silver and white. Cuts of all sizes grazed my body, but I pushed on with my rain of attacks, unwilling to give in to defeat.

The deafening clashes of metal, the crackling white lightning and the small grunts of pain merged together becoming the melody of battle.

But it was all over too soon.

It felt as if time has slowed down when that single strike broke through my guard. I saw it coming, but my body was unwilling to comply with my mind's orders to move. It couldn't move. It was too exhausted to move to the point it just stood there waiting for the strike to come.

And it did.

The tip of her blade sank into my chest, piercing through my body. No pain was felt that moment, only coldness and reality.

I stared wide eyed at Karasuba and her red eyes stared back, smiling.

"Got you," she whispered sweetly.

Before I even noticed, my entire body came to a halt. Not a single muscle moved. Skymaster dropped soundlessly from my loose grip, no longer glowing.

A silent cough escaped my throat, followed by a mouthful of blood.

My vision blurred and when it refocused again, I found myself looking up at an extinguishing, fiery sunset. It was such a beautiful day's end that I vision myself fading into it.

_'No...Can't give—yet...'_

Her pale, bloodied white face came into my view moments later, grinning as she pushed the blade further in until it stabbed into the ground itself. Her foot found its place directly on my wounded stomach, pressuring the life liquid to ooze out to form a pool of blood around my body.

This time the pain was felt.

"Ugh..." I winced when she started to twist the hilt of the blade embalmed in my chest. I felt the hole in my chest widened and damn did it hurt.

It did not stop there though as the Sekirei standing above me let out a pleased laughter. Then, the blade was yanked out and as quickly as it was out, it returned into my flesh again, but this time slothfully right next to my heart. Again, it was pulled out and again it stabbed into me.

Involuntarily, an agonized groan leaked out of my lips and I felt a moment of life slip away with every attack that came down. My consciousness and senses could not keep the pain at bay.

"Did you think I will let you die so easily?" my torturer asked, ignoring my feeble attempt to pull her blade out.

_'...N—not yet...'_

My eyes no longer saw the sky, only her demonic grin.

The seal on my chest starting to burn on the twelfth strike, but I ignored it. Instead, I focused on swallowing down the cries of pain. I refused to bow down in defeat. Not to her. Not to anyone.

Grinning, I stared mockingly at the Black Sekirei. "You'll need to do better than that, little crow..." I wheezed, channeling what little magic I have left into the pool of blood around me.

Karasuba stopped her assaults for an instant and stared into my eyes in shock, but soon that shock was promptly replaced with great amusement and anger.

"You dare to make such remarks even during your last moments?" She mused as she pressed her boot heel into my stomach. "Really, your lowly species is truly pitiful, not even knowing when to admit defeat. Foolish!"

_'Almost t-there...'_

"Don't worry Monkey, I'll pay you back tenfold," she went on. "I'll dismember you piece by piece so slowly you would wished for death. You can only regret ever crossing paths with me!"

Again, her bloodied blade was raised into the air, it angled directly above my left arm ready to remove it from the shoulders. Time slowed down again while the blade sluggishly sailed down to my limb.

Inches by inches its came, until it was a mere inch away.

_'NOW!'_

The chance came, and I eagerly took it.

Even though my lungs was filled with blood, I let loose a war cry.

Then the sound of ripping flesh echoed in my time forgotten world.

The clacking of metal was next, then a cough.

Karasuba, the Black Sekirei stared down at my glowing crimson eyes, then at the blood lance that has pierced trough her heart with a stunned expression.

Silent came and went as we both stared into each other, glowing crimson and fading red.

Blood dripped from her punctured chest, running down my blood lance as it dripped to the ground like sand in an hour glass.

"A l-lowly human defeated...me?" she questioned, stumbling back, but still standing tall. "No...n-no...NO!"

Anger. Anger. Anger.

That was the sole emotion marred on her face as she let out a string of curses.

With every word she spoke her body trembled like a leaf.

I could only gaze at her tiredly while struggling to stand up again.

Picking up my sword with a shaking hand, I took one staggering step towards the half-dead, enraged Sekirei.

She was down on her knees now, failing to pull out the blood spear I created until I willed it to melt back into a pool of blood.

The Sekirei glared at me with absolute hate, but before she could verbalize another word my sword moved to her throat.

"Really...you need to stop with the monkey title Karasuba," I whispered, my voice breaking midsentence. A warrior like her deserved my respect, thus a quick death was sufficient. "My name is Rain...Remember it because we'll be seeing each other in hell one day."

Her eyes widened again just as I shoved the tip of my sword into her throat, severing the trachea.

Blood spurt into the air. A body collapsed onto the floor.

Before the life fade away in Karasuba's eyes, she whispered a single name, "Y-yume..."

Silence.

I stared at the Karasuba's body, drinking in her death features: lifeless grey eyes, pale white skin and a clenched fist.

It was finally over. Or so I thought.

Up head, the sound of a military copter razed the silence of death.

A copter with the letters MBI labeled on its side.

"Son of a bitch..." I painfully mumbled, leaning onto Skymaster for support. I was a bleeding mess and was close to fainting on the spot. I did not have the strength to deal with Minaka's men.

Urging my body to hold on, I leaped away from Karasuba's body and dragged my body eastwards, slowly and painfully. The sound of the copper slowly faded overtime.

With every step I take, a trail of crimson followed and a ragged breath was lost, but I moved on, one step at a time. There was no time to waste here-I want to return to the base and see her. I wanted to see Uzume. She would cry at my appearance, but she would forgive me at the end.

However the fates were cruel—the seal glowed beneath my tattered shirt.

A hot pulse ran through my body.

From a distance, the weak ticking of time echoed.

The end came when the midnight hour chimed.

Its melody warm and rich, like a pair of open arms beckoning to offer hope and comfort.

Blistering pain came next, a pain so great it brought me to my knees.

It was complete. The seal was complete.

I stared at my chest, witnessing the blasted seal glowing with power, sucking away the final drop of my life.

I felt every bit of magic drain away, everyone cell in the body shut now, one at a time.

One at a time.

'_No, not yet.'_

The voice deep inside screamed, yet my body continued to shut down. Cell by cell.

My vision was the victim to be lost. Everything in my eyes dimmed, but still I pushed on.

My arms reached out—arms I could no longer feel.

Death. It was moments away, but I won't let it reap me away.

Even if I want to see her again, even if I want to return to her side again, even if I want to ask her that question—I won't, not yet.

Not yet.

Not until I suffer enough. Not until I deemed myself worthy. Not until I forgive…not until then…

"_Then suffer dammit! Suffer until the last moment before you die! Feelings like this—crying, suffering, hatred, happiness—these feelings can only be felt when you are alive! Dying is too damn easy, so fuckin live and suffer before you die!"_

His words resonance in my numbing mind. Izayoi's words from that day. His cruel yet sky clearing words.

"—Yes, I still need to suffer, t-this is…hardly anything…!" I coughed out, clenching the sword handle desperately to stand again.

I could no longer see nor feel, but still I breathe and still I walked on.

I desperately staggered eastward, towards the base with my broken body.

I no longer see, feel or hear, but I walked/crawled on, one painful step after another.

_"Even if you're down and smeared in mud, you must continue on, brat."_

"Just like you sai-Eva...just like you said...I still have much...to do...right, Sieg?"

Another step forward and I was on my knees again, panting and bleeding.

I could no longer move.

I could no longer breathe.

"—KAICHOU, HE'S HERE!"

In that brief moment, I saw.

I saw a blue magic seal.

I saw blurs moving towards me.

And I saw her cold, violet eyes staring into mine.

Darkness reigned again and my body went limp.

* * *

**A/N: **Finished! This chapter has been a hurdle to write since I've never written a battle scene in my short life before and I'll apologize if it sucks. I know it is a bit long for a single battle, but it was good practice and I'll make sure to shorten it in future chapters.

Now to that unanswered question: Is it a huge cross-over?

The answer is yes! There will be many characters from other animes mingling in the DxD world.

Once again, if you have any questions ask away, I'll be more than happy to answer them.

Please read/enjoy/review! Your reviews is what keeps me going :D


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